Method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe

ABSTRACT

A method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe includes: forming a vamp and a bottom liner from a fabric laminate and connecting the vamp and the bottom liner to form a semi-finished shoe with seams; disposing a shoe last in a foot-receiving space provided in the semi-finished shoe; coating an outer surface of the semi-finished shoe with a resin material and curing the resin material to form a moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer on the outer surface of the semi-finished shoe and to cover the seams; attaching a shoe sole to the bottom liner; and removing the shoe last from the receiving space.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to a method of making a shoe, and more particularly to a method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe.

BACKGROUND

Conventional shoes, such as walking shoes, sneakers or boots, may have a vamp made from fabrics, natural leather or synthetic leather. The shoes with the fabric or natural leather vamp have the advantages of breathability and perspiration repellence, but are not water resistant. The shoes with the synthetic leather vamp have the advantage of water resistance, but are defective in breathability and often cause a sweltering feeling. Besides, the water-resistant effect of the conventional shoes cannot be comprehensively achieved without application of strips made from a waterproof material or waterproof adhesive to seams of the synthetic leather vamp.

The galoshes are generally made from a waterproof rubber material in one piece without formation of seams by injection molding techniques. Since the rubber material is relatively dense, the conventional galoshes are relatively rigid, heavy and moisture-impermeable. After wearing the galoshes for a long time, a user may experience discomfort from sweltering feelings.

SUMMARY

Therefore, an object of the disclosure is to provide a method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe that can alleviate at least one of the drawbacks of the prior art.

According to one aspect of the disclosure, the method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe includes: forming a vamp and a bottom liner from a fabric laminate and connecting the vamp and the bottom liner to form a semi-finished shoe with seams; disposing a shoe last in a foot-receiving space provided in the semi-finished shoe; coating an outer surface of the semi-finished shoe with a resin material and curing the resin material to form a moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer on the outer surface of the semi-finished shoe and to cover the seams; attaching a shoe sole to the bottom liner; and removing the shoe last from the receiving space.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is a flow chart illustrating consecutive steps of an embodiment of a method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe according to the disclosure;

FIGS. 2 to 4 are schematic views illustrating formation of a semi-finished shoe of the method shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating disposing a shoe last in the semi-finished shoe of the method shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating coating of a resin material on the semi-finished shoe of the method shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating even distribution of the resin material of the method shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view illustrating attaching of a shoe sole of the method shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view illustrating removing of the shoe last of the method shown in FIG. 1;

FIGS. 10 to 12 are schematic views illustrating changes in an appearance of the shoe according to the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 4, an embodiment of a method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe according to the disclosure begins with forming a vamp 10 and a bottom liner 14 from a fabric laminate 11, followed by connecting the vamp 10 and the bottom liner 14 to form a semi-finished shoe 1 with seams 13 (step S01). In this embodiment, the fabric laminate 11 may include an outer fabric layer 111 and an inner fabric layer 113 connected to the outer fabric layer 111. The fabric laminate 11 may further include a foam layer 112 interposed between the outer fabric layer 111 and the inner fabric layer 113. In this embodiment, forming of the vamp 1 and the bottom liner 14 is conducted by cutting a plurality of pieces 12 corresponding to the vamp 1 and the bottom liner 14 from the fabric laminate 11, and then connecting the pieces 12 by sewing to form the semi-finished shoe 1 provided with a foot-receiving space 101.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, in step S02, a shoe last 2 is disposed in the foot-receiving space 101 provided in the semi-finished shoe 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 6 and 7, in step S03, an outer surface 100 of the semi-finished shoe 1 is coated with a resin material 3, and the resin material 3 is cured to forma moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32 on the outer surface 100 of the semi-finished shoe 1 and to cover the seams 13. As an example, coating the outer surface 100 of the semi-finished shoe 1 with the resin material 3 is performed by immersing the semi-finished shoe 1 together with the shoe last 2 in a resin material bath for a predetermined immersing time. For obtaining an intended or required thickness, the shoe last 2 is optionally rotated about an axis (L) extending in the lengthwise direction of the shoe last 2 to evenly distribute the resin material 3 on the outer surface 100 of the semi-finished shoe 1. Then, the resin material 3 is cured by heating the resin material 3 formed on the outer surface 100 of the semi-finished shoe 1 in an oven (not shown) under a predetermined heating temperature for a predetermined heating time. The moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32 formed on the outer surface 100 of the semi-finished shoe 1 may have a thickness ranging between 25 μm and 50 μm. The resin material 3 may be made from polyurethane resin. Based on a composition of the resin material 3, the immersing time may range between 5 seconds and 20 seconds. Based on the required thickness of the resin layer 32 and the composition of the resin material 3, the heating time may range between 1 minute and 30 minutes, and the heating temperature may range between 50° C. and 180° C.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 8, in step S04, a shoe sole 5 is attached to the bottom liner 14 through an adhesive 4. Referring to FIG. 9, in step S05, the shoe last 2 is removed from the receiving space 101.

The moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32 of the vamp 1 may have different structures due to selection of the resin material 3. For example, the moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32 may be in the form of a porous membrane or non-porous membrane. The porous membrane has a plurality of pores, each of which has a diameter smaller than that of a water molecule and larger than that of a water vapor molecule. By way of a proper pore size arrangement, the porous membrane is waterproof and moisture-permeable. The non-porous membrane is free of pores and has a hydrophilic functional group-providing side and a hydrophobic functional group-providing side. When the non-porous member serves as the moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32, the water vapor molecules will be adsorbed on the hydrophilic functional group-providing side, diffused to the hydrophobic functional group-providing side through capillary action and finally transpired to the environment.

As for the properties of the moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32, the layer 32 may have a water resistance greater than 2000 mm as measured by the method in accordance with JIS L-1092B, and a moisture permeability greater than 2000 g/m³/24 hr as measured by the method in accordance with JIS L-1099B1.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, an outer surface 1111 of the outer fabric layer 111 may be subjected to a surface treatment in cooperation with texture modification of the moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32, and an outer surface 321 of the resin layer 32 may exhibit different appearances, such as a glossy or matte appearance. Referring to FIG. 12, alternatively, the outer surface 1111 of the outer fabric layer 111 may be embossed or patterned and the moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32 may be made from a transparent resin material, and the shoe may have different appearances.

It is noted that based on the intended application and requirements, an additive, such as a pigment, a UV absorber, or an antibacterial agent, may be added to the resin material so that the waterproof and moisture-permeable resin layer 32 may achieve one or more of hyperchromic, ultraviolet resistant and antibacterial effects, etc.

Moreover, incorporation of the foam layer 112 would allow for the shoe to be soft, comfortable and lightweight for wearing. In one form, the foam layer 112 is omitted so that the outer fabric layer 111 is in direct contact with the inner fabric layer 113.

In summary, compared with the conventional shoes made from the fabrics, the natural leather or the synthetic leather, with the moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer 32 covering the outer surface 1111 of the outer fabric layer 111 and the seams 13, the vamp 10 of the shoe of this disclosure is both waterproof and moisture-permeable. Besides, cutting the pieces 12 from the fabric laminate 11 and connecting the pieces 12 to form the vamp 10 and the bottom liner 14 make the semi-finished shoe 1 more flexible to match with designs and property requirements of different shoes, and the requirement for developing molds for different shoes can be eliminated. The structural arrangement of the outer fabric layer 111, the foam layer 112 and the inner fabric layer 113 makes the moisture-permeable and waterproof fabric laminate 11 of the shoe relatively lightweight and comfortable for wearing. Surface treatment performed on the outer surface 1111 of the outer fabric layer 111, such as embossing or patterning makes the appearance of the shoe more changeable so as to increase the aesthetic value of the shoe.

In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is considered the exemplary embodiment, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of making a moisture-permeable and waterproof shoe, comprising: forming a vamp and a bottom liner from a fabric laminate and connecting the vamp and the bottom liner to form a semi-finished shoe with seams; disposing a shoe last in a foot-receiving space provided in the semi-finished shoe; coating an outer surface of the semi-finished shoe with a resin material and curing the resin material to form a moisture-permeable and waterproof resin layer on the outer surface of the semi-finished shoe and to cover the seams; attaching a shoe sole to the bottom liner; and removing the shoe last from the receiving space.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein prior to curing of the resin material, the shoe last is rotated to evenly distribute the resin material on the outer surface of the semi-finished shoe.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein coating the outer surface of the semi-finished shoe with the resin material is performed by immersing the semi-finished shoe together with the shoe last in a resin material bath.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the fabric laminate includes an outer fabric layer and an inner fabric layer connected to the outer fabric layer.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the fabric laminate further includes a foam layer interposed between the outer fabric layer and the inner fabric layer.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein an outer surface of the outer fabric layer is patterned.
 7. The method of claim 4, wherein an outer surface of the outer fabric layer is embossed.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the resin layer has a water resistance greater than 2000 mm as measured by the method in accordance with JIS L-1092B.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the resin layer has a moisture permeability greater than 2000 g/m²/24 hr as measured by the method in accordance with JIS L-1099B1.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the resin material is made from polyurethane resin.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the resin layer has an outer surface that is opposite to the outer fabric layer and that exhibits a glossy appearance.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the resin layer has an outer surface that is opposite to the outer fabric layer and that exhibits a matte appearance. 